


Those days we rise above the stars

by JuliaBaggins



Series: Our favourite Exy players at the Olympics [2]
Category: All For the Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: M/M, Olympics, Olympics Opening Ceremony - Freeform, also some thoughts about andreil, and his thoughts of kevin and their relationship, mostly wymack's pov, this takes place four years after the other olympics opening thing i wrote, yeah i couldn't resist writing another one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2018-08-07 18:52:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7725865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JuliaBaggins/pseuds/JuliaBaggins
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Four years after winning a gold medal, Kevin, Andrew and Neil are at an Olympic Opening Ceremony again.<br/>And David Wymack is there to see his son lead the US team into the arena.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Those days we rise above the stars

David Wymack was sitting in a red plastic chair, Abby's hand in his, and they were watching the Olympic opening ceremony together. The two of them had been there four years ago too, had cached a glimpse of some former foxes during the celebration and then witnessed how the US Exy team won the gold medal. And it had not just been that they won, that these were some of Wymack’s former players, annoying teenagers that had grown up to be a part of his family, no. 

Kevin had been playing, leading his team to the final and then, in the very last moment of what would go down in Exy history as one of the best and most thrilling matches ever, he had scored the final point that secured the US's win. Exy's superstar, Kevin Day, had made the final shot. And David Wymack saw his son win an Olympic gold medal. 

In that moment, he would have thought that he could never be more proud of his son, his Kevin, but now, he was not so sure anymore.

 

The reason for this soon walked into the stadium, accompanied by the cheers of thousands: the US Olympic team. Lead by none other than Kevin Day, waving the star spangled banner and smiling like this was the moment he had been waiting for his whole life. 

And maybe it was. After all these years where he had been told that he would be second best, that this would never change, he had been given the honor of carrying the flag today. It was the first time ever that an Exy player got this opportunity, their whole sport seemed to have been celebrating at this news, and David Wymack had been sitting at home in the house he shared with Abby, hearing the news from Kevin himself over the phone. He had been at a loss of words, and so he was now.

Abby handed Wymack a tissue, and just in that moment he became aware of the tears that were running down his cheeks. There were some in her eyes too and it was not as if this would have been a surprise – Abby had seen most of the Foxes as something like her children over the years, especially the team that had won this historic first match against the Ravens after the most stressful year Wymack had ever to suffer through in his coaching career. They still tried to meet every summer for a few days, and she loved them all. But of course Kevin was even more special – he was David’s son after all, and when Abby looked at the framed picture in her office that showed the three of them at Christmas a few years ago, she’d say that he’d become a little bit her son too. And so of course it wasn’t a surprise that she was moved when she saw Kevin carrying the flag today; even more so when she cached the sparkling pride in Wymack’s eyes.

 

Kevin, who was halfway through the stadium now, gave the flag another enthusiastic wave, enjoying everything about the feeling of this moment. It should have been impossible to make out single faces in the massive crowd of sport fans and flashlights, but somehow, Kevin's eyes still found David Wymack, the first coach to ever believe in him as a person and not just as a number; his father. He nodded in his direction, unable to wave or use his hands in any other way with the flag in them, but he felt that Wymack would catch the gesture. None of them were great when it came to talking about their feelings, never had been, but that wasn’t necessary – they understood each other, and Kevin knew how much today meant to Wymack too.

 

When the US team took their place at a far corner of the court and the crowd’s attention shifted to the next nation walking in, Wymack’s eyes staid on Kevin. He remembered the day Kevin had turned up in front of his door, a shattered hand and broken dreams, a fallen prince, a raven who had lost his wings. How he had worked as an assistant coach, the revelation that he’d stay as a player with the foxes that shocked the Exy-world so much, the shock at the news about Edgar Allen transferring to their district, the thrill when he first suspected that Kevin was working with his left hand again. And of course, there was also the moment when Kevin had come to his office and told him that he was his son. That he’d known this for _years._ Thinking about this moment was still difficult for Wymack, even after all this time. 

He would have never guessed how it would _feel_ to have a son, or rather to have a son and be aware of this fact, and remembered the moment when he had first felt a spark of what this was like, not only knowing that he had a child but being a father. Kevin had turned up at his door, drunk, and told him about his plan to get rid of the inked two in his face, something that David had always hated. 

While he sat there at the Olympic opening ceremony, David thought of a lot more special moments that Kevin and him had shared. And then he remembered an interview that Kevin had given shortly after their gold medal win four years ago, arm in arm with Jeremy Knox, both smiling widely in the camera. Kevin had thanked his teammates for everything, praised the opposing team for the fight they had delivered, and then he was asked if there was someone else whom he wanted to thank for their support during his career. The way the question was asked clearly indicated that they supposed he’d say something about the Ravens, maybe even about Riko, but he didn’t – Kevin simply answered “Of course. I want to thank my father.” and then, directly into the camera “I wouldn’t be here today without you. Dad.”

This interview had been broadcasted over the stadium’s video screens, so Wymack had seen it live, and afterwards, when there had been flowers and medals and their national anthem, he had taken Kevin in his arms. And they both knew how much they wanted to say with this hug.

 

A modern dance performance was shown, supported by lots of colors and flashing lights, and Wymack’s gaze was still fixed on the American flag and the people around it. When he looked closely, Wymack thought he could make out two small persons right behind Kevin, one with blond and one with red hair. After all these years, it was still as if Andrew was watching Kevin’s back, and he was thankful for it. Andrew Minyard, what a person – he had never been paid nearly enough to deal with him, especially when things involved Neil Josten as well. But of course, these two troublemakers still meant a lot to him. 

He could remember their first days with the foxes as well as Kevin’s, and he knew that they had gone through so much, but when he saw Andrew Minyard and Neil Josten now, he didn’t think of that, of their horrible pasts, of Columbia and Baltimore. He thought of them how they had fallen asleep side by side at his couch during one of their fox-meetings last summer, Andrew’s head resting on Neil’s shoulder, Nicky taking pictures from every possible angle while doing his best to keep quiet and avoid being murdered by his cousin. 

When David Wymack thought of Neil and Andrew, he thought of them shouting things no one else could understand across the whole court, about how he had watched their first match on the same pro team, about Andrew kissing Neil’s sleeping forehead after he had managed to get himself into the hospital after falling over a shoebox. He thought of this look that only ever appeared in Andrew Minyard’s eyes when he looked at Neil Josten. And he thought of the fact that Neil had told him that he would ask Andrew to marry him.

 

The dance performance ended, the lights went out and darkness slung its wings around the whole stadium. Wymack wasn’t able to see Kevin anymore, neither Neil or Andrew. But he knew they were there, waiting for another Olympic games to start. And he knew that it was possible for them to reach greatness again. 

A bunch of broken kids that had made it to the Olympics as world class Exy players. 

Oh how proud he was of them.

**Author's Note:**

> Every nice comment will have me jumping into the air :D
> 
> Title is, again, from Gloria Estefan's song "Reach"


End file.
